They were
by labyrinth1119
Summary: ONE SHOT! A young man reflects on what it means to belong, and makes a list. [Slash HD, spoilers for HBP, and character death.]


A/N: Just consider this a brief commercial break while the final chapter of November Rain takes its sweet time to transfer from my mind to paper. I actually wrote this before HBP, so I had to tweak it a little before I was able to post it.

Warning: Character death, spoilers for all 6 books, and mentions of slash.

Disclaimer: "Yes your honor, I swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth…I do not own the characters in this story and am not making any money from it."

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They were somebody's mother… _

A childhood is ripped from the mundane and unexceptional with the arrival of a single letter that holds an invitation. When the day arrives to begin her new school, her parents proudly lead their amber-haired child to board a train that takes her to a new destiny. She excels in her world, achieving admirable grades, and ignoring the sounds of prejudice around her. She also tries to ignore the troublemaker, but he is so persistent that she succumbs to his charm in her seventh year and allows herself to be swept off her feet, and adds love to her life.

Dark times come forth after she has married, and she wants to protect the world that allowed her to blossom. She joins a secret organization to fight the evil that is spreading. As evil gains momentum, she relishes a brief glimpse of perfection with the birth of her son. She revels in his innocence for what only seems a moment before a prophecy demands a retreat and need for special protection. Hiding with her family, she realizes her good nature has betrayed her, and evil is at her doorstep.

She has only a moment to mourn the loss of her true love before she is faced with the personification of malevolence. Throwing herself into death, she imprints herself on her son as only a mother can, and dies with the thought of how much she will miss him.

_They were somebody's best friend…_

He was already an outcast in his home for not sharing the same views as his mother; his pureblood lineage just never made him feel superior, and for that…he was a traitor.

Salvation was found in a friendship that shared a love of mischief, and he learns that family is not just biological. He claws his way back from the brink of total rejection, and adopts a new outlook of hope. Eventually, he moves away from the narrow minds of his family and makes a life on his own.

Outraged by the growing support of a madman's dogma, he joins a secret organization to fight the segregation and destruction. He watches as his own brother joins the wrong side, only to die at his master's hand because his conscience would not allow him to cross a line that he could not return from. However, the arrival of his godson fuels his determination. This determination becomes absolute when he learns of his best friend's danger. When the plan is desecrated by treachery, he blames himself for allowing the switch.

He is not allowed to take custody of his godson, but does provide a speedy method of escape for the one taking the baby. He then turns his focus into hunting the one responsible, but his irrationality and hatred leave him vulnerable and he falls into a trap. Arrested and labeled a murderer, he believes the true betrayer to be dead, until a picture reawakens his lust for vengeance. He escapes from the prison and while hunted by a world, he somehow manages to corner his prey. In one night, he regains a friendship, a godson, and nearly gains his freedom. However, fate decreed that freedom would not be a prize that evening, and he was forced to hide himself to await another day for revenge.

Dark times descend again, and the secret organization is reformed. He feels terribly inadequate, not able to help or fight, but he is pacified by the growing relationship he has with his godson. Frustrated by his limitations, he can do nothing more then lend advice to matters that threaten his godson's life. When the opportunity for heroics arrives, he runs blindly to the rescue. He helps the other order members retrain the insurrectionists, but allows his own ego to announce a false victory. As he falls into emptiness, his last thought was that he failed.

_They were somebody's father…_

Raised in an environment of wealth, he is accustomed to having what he wants…when he wants it. He is surrounded by expectations and honors his family's heritage when the sorting hat places him in the house of his ancestors. Disgusted by the sort of people that share his education, he vows to find a way to remove them from his small-minded world. His housemates, all pureblood, would often complain about the contamination to their uniqueness. It was during one of these conversations that he hears a name, a name that will later die on the tongue before it is spoken.

After school, he eagerly joins this cult of protesters, and pours every ounce of focus into one man's vision. His money, power, and influence of name prove invaluable to this new movement, and he quickly becomes one of the most trusted advisors. Suffering a defeat that he never considered, he claims ignorance of such involvement and slinks back to an empty life where a new vehicle of retribution is only a year old.

He feeds all his prejudice and hatred, he stresses superiority, and he teaches the darkest magic all to a small boy who knows no other way. When the moment comes to send his son to his Alma matter, he sends him off with the information that a certain someone is also starting school that year and that it would be beneficial to have this boy as an ally. When the news of the rejection reaches his knowledge, it incites him, and he decides to take matters into his own hands.

When he returns the following year to purchase school supplies for his son, and dispose of some contraband, he strategically places a small book into a small girl's possession. The plan almost seems to work as panic rises and the Headmaster is removed, but he is thwarted again by a young raven-haired boy.

Years pass, punishment to his son becomes more frequent and more painful, all in an effort of redirecting his failure. Then a miracle happens, and an ancient spell resurrects his master, and the cult is reformed. He keeps this glorious news quiet at his master's request and uses his power and wealth to manipulate the Ministry to discredit the other eyewitness to the event. He calculates a new strategy to exploit the boy's heroic nature, which leads to another confrontation, this one deep within the bowels of the Ministry. The plan fails again, and his master allows his incarceration, and he is made to sit and wait.

For two years he suffers his punishment before freedom is granted to take part in the final confrontation. He is fierce in battle, but faces an unexpected opponent and is killed. His last thought as he dies, is how he does not deserve this.

_They were somebody's enemy…_

The gravity of his years allows infinite wisdom to set a sturdy foundation for the role of a leader. His influence inspires many to seek his council, but he never abuses this trust while he maintains the humble post of Headmaster.

When the dark times arrive, he creates a secret organization to combat the evil, and becomes the one most feared by another. He exploits this fear to gain the upper hand, and dictates the chain of events that started when a prophecy is overheard. To protect the savior of their world, he employs a complex spell that falls victim to corruption. He removes the child from their world until such time they must both face destiny.

Years go by, and he watches from a distance as the child is reintegrated into society. The child faces many trials, and though he should not interfere, he finds his affection for the boy overwhelming and therefore meddles more then necessary. Pride accentuates the twinkle is his eye as his young protégé triumphs over adversity time and time again. When he finally convinces the Ministry to trust his claim of resurrection, he knows that time is running out, and finally tells the boy what his true role in life is.

He hurriedly trains his savior and the rest of the order to prepare for the end of a destiny. Knowing that he will not be here to witness the reclaiming of peace, he takes the final year of his life and bestows as much knowledge and power to the young hero, filling the boy with just enough rage and revenge to continue on alone. He sacrifices himself for a student, knowing that something more then hate lives within their soul, and as he faces what must be done, he takes a moment to review the snapshots of his life. As his power ebbs away, and his heart slows to a stop, he is completely content and hopes that there are Lemon Drops in the Great Beyond.

_They were somebody's brother…_

He was one of many, growing up in a house where resources were thin. Always the brunt of sibling jokes, always coveting things that were out of reach, and always trying to shine in a sea of stars, he never feels shame for his family. His childhood was filled with stories of the Boy-Who-Lived, so he is spellbound when this famous personality chooses him over another who had immeasurable wealth.

Their friendship is unmatched, growing stronger with every challenge they face. In just the first year he is recognized by the Headmaster himself for his strategic mind. His second year of school earns him an award for special services for facing a threat to his sister. Third year rocked his foundation as things were revealed that altered history, but it was his fourth year that was the most difficult. Jealousy made him loose sight of what is true, and he is ashamed of himself. He rebounds from that weakness and supports his friend during a tournament and later learns that a murderer has been reborn.

In his fifth year, he is given a new responsibility and a love he is too terrified to confess. During this year, he is denied a true education in defense and joins a secret group to defy the Ministry and strengthen ties between the houses. The year ends with a cataclysmic triumph that is tainted with a casualty.

The final years are spent training to prepare for the final battle which he fearlessly faces when the time comes. He never doubts that his side will win and he fights for the tomorrow he knows will come, but he is overtaken. As a green glow absorbs into his soul, he wishes that he told her how much he loved her.

_They were somebody's son…_

Rejected by his father, he becomes bitter to all those who do not share his nature. He experiments with power while at school, and embraces his heritage by unleashing a monster. Only when threatened with closure of the facility does he end the terror and creates a scapegoat that no one will refute. He earns an award for services to the school and his ego of greatness grows, but the suspicion of a teacher reins his desire of domination.

Researching and perfecting his magic, he embarks on his quest and creates his cult. He finds willing followers from the most influential families, and curses those who resist to act in his command. With executions performed at his whim and the world gripped in fear, he is convinced that total control is within his grasp. News of a prophecy that paints a different future, gives him pause, but only for a moment; then his ego leads him to a doorway.

Dispatching of those who had thrice defied him, he faces the subject of his downfall and illuminates the room in green. He is thrown into nothingness, his body robbed for his mistake, and he flees into the night. He spends years calculating his return, coincidently a possibility presents itself the same time his nemesis starts school, but his feeble host succumbs to an ancient magic and he is left without a body…again.

Year after year, plan after plan, failure after failure, his strength continues to grow as does the re-creation of his cult. In the fourteenth year of his limitations he seizes a discovery that will give him a reincarnation. The event is almost perfect, but the boy escapes and tattles the entire encounter to an old man. He manipulates the fear generated by the rumors of his return and stays quiet. He uses this time to pursue the reason for his continued defeat which lies deep within the Ministry.

As time passes, many lessons are learned as others attempt to steal the orb and fall victim to its protection. His exploitation of a mental connection successfully draws a young wizard to the Ministry and the secret of the prophecy is almost uncovered. The evening ends with another defeat and he is forced to rescind to a more powerful wizard.

Preparations for the final battle consume his focus, and after a few years he is ready and he confronts his destiny. He spends no effort to defend those that fight with him, he does not care for their welfare, he seeks only one person. They meet and because the other is so weak from all the fighting, he feels that success is finally within his grasp. But he does what he has always done, and underestimated his opponent.

As death rushes towards him and he passes from conscience, he predicts that now he shall become a god.

_They were somebody's hero…_

He was too young to remember when the life he should have had was taken away from him, all that his memory tells him is that he is a freak who deserves the black sheep treatment he received from his relatives. While locked away in a cupboard, he spends countless hours dreaming up a fantasy life. A fantasy life that he never expected would come true. By the escort of a giant, he is inducted into a world that he thought only existed in his imagination.

In this world he learns the truth of his past, the reputation that precedes him, and he meets his first friend and his first enemy. He desperately wants to protect his new world, and his exploits of bravery during his school years are well known and well documented. His sixth year brings a surprising death, and a vow to win. After his sixth year, he is secreted away to receive private tutoring and intense training for the battle that was rapidly approaching. It was here that a new future is offered with the arrival of a new ally.

It was about 6 months into what would have been his seventh year when his advisors bring in a partner. The identity of this person shocks him, regardless of the near mercy he witnessed the previous year. Anger and distrust cloud the introduction, he just doesn't understand how he is expected to work with a person that had been his school yard bully for five years, and who is branded with the mark. He listens to story after story, reason after reason; all of which are never relayed by the party in question, but by a bystander in the approaching destiny. He does acquiescent, and reconciles his emotions.

For a while they work together, never expanding this partnership into anything more then business. They do not share a cozy little dorm room that would invite after dark conversations. They do not share meals together where the uncomfortable silence would demand a need for empty chatter. They do not show concern for the other's well being after a brutal session of learning resistance to dark magic.

Until a chance interruption shows that his perceptions may have been wrong.

He had stopped in the bathroom on his way to another training exercise, never expecting that someone would be inside because his partner was supposed to be in the other building. He entered the lavatory and witnessed his partner investigating a particular wound that he had apparently just received. But this was not what was so startling, it was the evidence of old scars that told a history of something more sinister. He asked his partner who had created this collection of injuries, and learns that the other received punishment for their father's failure. He takes this news in stride, and does not offer sympathy; instead he shows his own scars…the ones that are hidden.

They take turns telling the story of each blemish, and a friendship is born. Tremulous conversations begin which lead to engaging dinner discussions followed by whispered secrets in the darkness after sneaking into the other's room. Eventually, platonic feelings begin to root into something more profound.

The flirtation is awkward at first with neither aware of how the other will react. He is nervous and consumed with the feeling that time is running out, so he makes his move. Relief floods his mind as his attention is received and reciprocated. He finds incredible happiness with this new relationship, and his focus for the task ahead brings a new hope.

Over the next few months he experiences a whole new range of human sensations, lust and passion, companionship and humor, all taken and given with pride. He likes this new possible future and increases his determination to survive. When the time comes for the final confrontation, he takes his lover by the hand and with a gentle squeeze tries to communicate that everything will be alright.

The battle is exhausting; it just seems to have no end. He fights so hard, drawing on every reserve of power he has and hears a small trumpet every time a Death Eater falls. Good, bad, they all litter the arena with their broken bodies, and he wades through them looking for just one person. He passes his lover who just killed his father, and he passes his best friend…dead…on the ground.

Finally, he finds who he has been searching for.

They approach their destiny with wands drawn and eyes locked, and for a moment he fears that he doesn't have enough power to finally end this nightmare. With a glance to his love, he uses that rush of feeling to do what he was born to do. He watches the murderer fall into death, and he turns…smiling…to rejoice with his friends. The proclamation of victory is too early as one of the last remnants of evil cast a blind spell that gets lucky and finds its mark. He feels death approaching and sees his lover running to his side. The words and cries that come from his love are muted as blackness begins to cloud his soul. He whispers an apology for his death, but does not regret that the future he hoped for will not happen. He knows that when his eyes close for the eternity, they will reopen in a realm where he will find family and friends waiting for him. The last thought he has, is that he is truly thankful to have ever been a part of this adventure.

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A young man with platinum blonde hair and pale skin, blends into the stoic white walls that surround him. He holds a broken quill that he uses to memorialize the dead by scratching their names into the wall. He had gone quite mad after watching his lover die, and now he does not speak. He only remembers. _

_Memories flash through his broken mind as name after name is added to the wall, and he knows that these people have no degree of separation. One single commonality binds them; one single thread connected their lives in this universe._

_They were somebody's…_

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A/N: Thank you so much for reading! I would love it if you left a review to let me know what you think. 


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